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Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War (two other names are occasionally used) refers to an armed conflict between West Pakistan (Pakistan) & East Pakistan (Bangladesh) that lasted for roughly nine months in 1971. The war resulted in Bangladesh's independence from Pakistan. REASONS FOR WAR • YEARS BEFORE THE WAR During Partition of India, Pakistan, as a country, gained independence on 14 August 1947 following end of British rule over South Asian countries. The division was made based on religion. Pakistan was created out of Muslim majority territories in the West & East, & India was created out of vast Hindu majority regions in centre. The Western zone was popularly & officially called West Pakistan & the Eastern zone (Bangladesh) was called East Bengal & later, East Pakistan. Capital of Pakistan was established in Karachi in West Pakistan & then moved to Islamabad in 1958. • ECONOMIC EXPLOITATION West Pakistan (had 4 provinces: Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan & North-West Frontier Province) dominated the divided country & received more money than the East. Reports of Advisory Panels for 4th 5 Year Plan 1970-75, Vol. I, published by planning commission of Pakistan Between 1948 & 1960, East Pakistan's export earnings had been 70% while it only received 25% of import earning. In 1948, East Pakistan had 11 textile mills while West had 9. In 1971, number of textile mills in West had grown to 150 while that in East had only gone up to 26. A transfer of 2.6 billion dollars worth resources was also done over time from East to West. Moreover it was felt that much of the income generated by east was primarily diverted towards fighting wars in Kashmir. •DIFFERENCE IN RELIGIOUS STANDPOINTSOne of the key issues was extent to which Islam was followed. The West with overwhelming 97% Muslim population was less liberal than East which was at least 15% non-Muslim (mainly Hindus). The difference was made further clear after Bangladeshi independence, when Bangladesh was established as a secular country under the name "People's Republic of Bangladesh" rather than as the Islamic Republic of Bangladesh. •OTHER FACTORS INCLUDING LANGUAGEClose ties existed between East Pakistan & West Bengal, one of the Indian states bordering Bangladesh, as both were composed mostly of Bengalis. West Pakistan viewed East Pakistani links with India unfavourably as relations between India & Pakistan had been very poor since independence. In 1948, Mohammad Ali Jinnah declared in Dhaka that "Urdu & only Urdu", a language that was only spoken in West by Muhajirs & in East by Biharis, would be sole official language for all of Pakistan, while Bangla was spoken by the majority. Bengalies revolted & several students & civilians lost their lives on Feb 21, 1952. The day is revered in Bangladesh & in West Bengal as “Language Martyrs' Day”. Bitter feelings among them never ceased to grow, especially with repeated arrivals of army rulers. Later, remembering 1952 killings, UNESCO declared Feb 21 as International Mother Language Day. • IMPACT OF THE HURRICANE The already tense situation was further aggravated by a cyclone that struck East Pakistan in 1970. It was a particularly devastating year as the deadliest cyclone on record - the Bhola cyclone - struck Bangladesh made half a million dead. The apathy of West Pakistan leadership & its failure in responding quickly was a further platform for Awami League that capitalised on this tragedy. Pakistan Army failed to do relief work of any significance to alleviate the problem, which futher antagonised the already estranged Bengali populace. • POLITICAL CLIMAX The political prelude to the war included several factors. Due to differences between two states, a nascent separatist movement developed in East Pakistan. Any such movements were sharply limited, especially when martial law was in force between 1958 & 1962 (under General Ayub Khan) & between 1969 & 1972 (under General Yahya Khan). These military rulers were of West Pakistani origin & continued to favour West Pakistan economically. The situation reached a climax when in 1970 Awami League, largest East Pakistani political party, led by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, won a landslide victory in national elections winning 167 of 169 seats allotted for East Pakistan & a majority of 313 total seats in National Assembly. This gave Awami League right to form a government. However, the leader of Pakistan People's Party, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, refused to allow Rahman to become the Prime Minister of Pakistan. Instead, he proposed a notion of two Prime Ministers. Bhutto also refused to accept Rahman's Six Points. On 3 March 1971, the two leaders of the two wings along with the President General Yahya Khan met in Dhaka to decide the fate of the country. Talks failed. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman called for a nation-wide strike. •MILITARY PREPARATION IN WEST PAKISTANGeneral Tikka Khan was flown in to Dhaka to become Governor of East Bengal. East-Pakistani judges, including Justice Siddique, refused to swear him in. MV Swat, a ship of Pakistani Navy ,carrying ammunition & soldiers, was harboured in Chittagong Port & Bengali workers & sailors at port refused to unload the ship. A unit of East Pakistan Rifles refused to obey commands to fire on Bengali demonstrators, beginning a mutiny of Bengali soldiers. Between 10 & 13 March, Pakistan International Airlines cancelled all their international routes to urgently fly "Government Passengers" to Dhaka. These so-called "Government Passengers" were almost exclusively Pakistani soldiers in civil uniform. •BANGOBONDHU’S SPEECH OF 7 MARCH On March 7, 1971, Bangobondhu (Sheikh Mujibur Rahman) gave a speech at the Racecourse Ground (now called the Suhrawardy Udyan). In this speech he mentioned a further four-point condition to consider the National Assembly Meeting on March 25: 1.The immediate lifting of martial law. 2.Immediate withdrawal of all military personnel to their barracks. 3.An inquiry into the loss of life. 4.Immediate transfer of power to the elected representative of the people before the assembly meeting March 25. He urged "his people" to turn every house into a fort of resistance. He closed his speech saying, "The struggle this time is for our freedom. The struggle this time is for our independence." • VIOLENCE OF 25 MARCH At night of 25 March, Pakistan Army began a violent effort to suppress Bengali opposition. In Bangladesh & elsewhere, Pakistani actions are referred to as genocide. Before carrying out these acts, all foreign journalists were systematically deported from Bangladesh. Bengali members of military services were disarmed. The operation was called Operation Searchlight by Pakistani Army & was carefully devised by several top-ranked army generals to "crush" Bengalis. Although the violence focused on Dhaka, process of ethnic elimination was also carried out all around Bangladesh. Residential halls of Dhaka University were particularly targeted. The army destroyed Hindu residential Jagannath Hall & an estimated 600-700 of its residents murdered. Army denied any cold blooded killings at university, though Hamood-ur-Rehman commission in Pakistan states that overwhelming force was used at university. This fact & massacre at Jagannath Hall & nearby student dormitories of Dhaka University are corroborated by a videotape secretly filmed by Prof. Nur Ullah of East Pakistan Engineering University, whose residence was directly opposite to the student dormitories. Hindu areas all over Bangladesh suffered particularly heavy blows. By midnight, Dhaka was literally burning; especially Hindu dominated eastern part of Dhaka. Time magazine printed on 02.08.1971, "Hindus, who account for 3/4th of refugees & majority of dead, have borne brunt of military hatred." Bangobondhu was considered dangerous & arrested by Army. Yahya banned Awami League. Leaders were arrested, while few escaped Dhaka to avoid arrest. • DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE On 26 March, the nation waged an armed struggle against Pakistani occupation forces following killings of the night of 25 March. Pakistani forces arrested Bangobondhu, who, through a wireless message, had called upon the people to resist the occupation forces [The Daily Star, March 26, 2005]. Mujib was arrested at night of March 25-26, 1971 at about 1:30 a.m. (per Radio Pakistan’s news on Mar 29, 1971) which means effectively on Mar 26, 1971. On 26 March 1971, M A Hannan, an Awami League leader from Chittagong, is said to have made the first announcement of the declaration of independence over radio, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman signed an official declaration that read: Today Bangladesh is a sovereign & independent country. On Thursday night West Pakistani armed forces suddenly attacked the police barracks at Razarbagh & the EPR headquarters at Pilkhana in Dhaka. Many innocent & unarmed have been killed in Dhaka city & other places of Bangladesh. Violent clashes between EPR & Police on the one hand & the armed forces of Pakistan on the other are going on. The Bengalis are fighting the enemy with great courage for an independent Bangladesh. May God aid us in our fight for freedom. Joy Bangla. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, 25.03.1971, ("The History of the Liberation Movement in Bangladesh" by J. S. Gupta) A telegram reached to students in Chittagong. They realized it could be broadcast from Agrabad Station of Radio Pakistan. It was translated to Bangla by Dr Manjula Anwar. They failed to secure permission from higher authorities to broadcast it. They crossed Kalurghat Bridge into an area controlled by East Bengal Regiment under Major Ziaur Rahman. Bengali soldiers guarded the station as engineers prepared for transmission. At 19:45 on 26.03.1971, Major Zia broadcast another announcement of declaration of independence on behalf of Bangabondhu which is as follows. This is Shadhin Bangla Betar Kendro. I, Major Ziaur Rahman, at the direction of Bangobondhu Mujibur Rahman, hereby declare that the independent People's Republic of Bangladesh has been established. At his direction, I have taken command as the temporary Head of the Republic. In the name of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, I call upon all Bengalis to rise against the attack by the West Pakistani Army. We shall fight to the last to free our Motherland. By the grace of Allah, victory is ours. Joy Bangla. The Radio Station's transmission capability was limited. The message was picked up by a Japanese ship in Bay of Bengal & then re-transmitted by Radio Australia & later B.B.C. 26 March 1971 is hence considered official Independence Day & according to all Bangladeshi sources, the name Bangladesh was in effect henceforth. Certain sources, especially of Indian & Pakistani origin, continued to use "East Pakistan" until 16 December. THE MAIN WAR As political events gathered momentum, the stage was set for a clash between Pak Army & insurgents. Though smaller maoist style paramilitary bands started emerging, Mukti Bahini emerged increasingly visible. Led by Colonel Ataul Gani Osmani, a retired Pak Army officer, this band was raised as Mujib's action arm & security force before assuming character of a conventional guerilla force. After declaration of Independence, Pak military sought to quell them, but increasing numbers of Bengali soldiers defected to the underground "Bangladesh army". These Bengali units slowly merged into Mukti Bahini & bolstered their weaponry. They then launched operations against Pak Army killing many in the process. This setback prompted Pak Army to induct Razakars, a paramilitary force, from local populace to bolster their numbers. These people were essentially viewed as traitors & with suspicion by local Bengalis, as a vast majority of these recruits were Bihari Muslims who had settled during partition. This helped Pakistan stem the tide somewhat as the monsoon approached in June & July. Undeterred by this setback, Mukti Bahini regrouped as they gained in strength & capability. Aided by Indian government in West Bengal, they were equipped & trained to counter Pak Army. As there was no action then, it was seen by Pak military brass as a weakening of Bangladesh cause. It was merely lull before storm. After sensing enormity of this, the army was beefed up as the troop strength was increased to more than 80,000. This caused a rise in tensions across the border as India realised gravity of the situation. Indian military were preparing for eventual onslaught with aid of separatists & waited for end of monsoon season to enable easy passage. The Indians aimed to bypass the villages & towns & instead concentrate on cities & highways which ultimately would lead to capture of Dhaka. Pakistan decided to nullify such an attack & on Dec 3 & launched a series of preemptive airstrikes. It was modelled on Operation Focus employed by Israel Air Force during the Six-Day War. However the plan failed to achieve the desired success & was seen as an open act of unprovoked agression by Indians. Indira Gandhi then ordered the immediate mobilisation of troops & launched full scale invasion. This marked the official start of India-Pak war with fighting commencing in West Pakistan. Indian Army, far superior in numbers & equipment to that of Pakistan, executed a three-pronged pincer movement on Dhaka launched from Indian states of West Bengal, Assam, & Tripura. In all these places Mukti Bahini & local Bengalis played a vital role in aiding Indian Army. Many soldiers were ferried at night by locals across rivers & valuable information on the location & whereabouts of different military strongholds were gleaned. It was backed up by Indian Air Force which achieved near air supremacy towards end of war as entire East Pakistan airbase with all flights were destroyed. Indian Navy also annihilated eastern wing of Pak Navy & blockaded East Pak ports, thereby cutting off any escape routes for the stranded Pakistani warriors. Meanwhile, on the ground, nearly 3 brigades of Mukti Bahini along with Indian forces fought in a conventional formation. This was supplemented by guerilla style attacks on Pakis who were facing hostilities on land, air, water in both covert & overt ways. Undeterred, Pakis tried to fight back & boost sagging morale by incorporating Special Services Groups in sabotage & rescue missions. This however could not stop juggernaut of invading columns whose speed & power were too much to contain for Pak Army. On 16 Decr, within just 12 days, capital Dacca fell to Mitro Bahini - allied forces. Lt. Gen. Niazi surrendered to the combined forces headed by its commander Lt. Gen. Jagjit Singh Aurora. Bangladesh became liberated. • MAJOR BATTLES & OPERAIONS 1. EASTERN THEATRE • Battle of Hilli • Battle of Dhalai • Battle of Boyra 2. WESTERN THEATRE • Battle of Longewala • Battle of Basantar • Operation Trident 3. FORMATION OF THE FIRST REPUBLIC FOREIGN INTERVENTION • USA & USSR United States supported Pakistan both politically & materially. U.S. President Richard Nixon denied getting involved in the situation, saying that it was an internal matter of Pakistan. But when Pakistan's defeat seemed certain, Nixon sent USS Enterprise to the Bay of Bengal & threatened India with a nuclear strike. Enterprise arrived on station on 11 Dec 1971. Several documents released from Nixon Presidential Archives[1] show extent of the tilt that Nixon Administration demonstrated in favor of Pakistan. Among them, infamous Blood telegram from US embassy in Dacca, East Pakistan, stated horrors of genocide taking place there.[2] Notwithstanding this, Nixon, backed by Henry Kissinger, wanted to protect the interests of Pakistan as they were apprehensive of India. In fact, even after the war ended USA wanted to blame India. This propaganda apparently failed in the face of world opinion. The Soviet Union had sympathized with the Bangladeshis, & supported Indian Army & Mukti Bahini in war. It gave assurance to India that if a confrontation with U.S.S evolved, USSR would provide all necessary support to them. Soviets also sent in a nuclear submarine to ward off the threat posed by USS Enterprise in the Indian Ocean. • CHINA After USA had failed to act decisively in a manner that would not draw world condemnation to itself, it sought to rope China into the conflict. The plan was to attack India on two sides with help of China & thus stopping attack on East Pakistan. Kissinger's meeting with Chinese was with this intention. In fact, China was the only permanent member of the UN Security Council that was supportive of such an attack & even provided economic & military assistance. But it was limited to protecting West Pak in the face of a threat from India, & not aimed directly at internal conflict. It was also suspicious that U.S. did not want to dirty its hands. The Chinese government wanted a strongly worded UN Security Council resolution after which PRC would help Pakistan. It however did not materialise due to the Soviet veto & China did not intervene in the war. • UNITED NATIONS Though United Nations condemned human rights violations, it failed to diffuse the situation politically before start of war. The Security Council assembled on Dec 4 to discuss volatile situation in South Asia. USSR vetoed resolution twice. After lengthy discussions on Dec 7, General Assembly promptly adopted by a majority resolution calling for an "immediate cease-fire & withdrawal of troops." The United States on Dec 12 requested that Security Council be reconvened. However by the time it was reconvened, & proposals were finalised, the war ended, making the measures merely academic. The inaction of U.N.O in face of East Pakistan crisis was widely criticized. The conflict also exposed the delay in decision making that failed to address the underlying issues in time. • INDIA Majority of refugees from Bangladesh came to Indian state of West Bengal forcing then Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi to declare war on West Pakistan. Pakistan Air Force also attacked many Indian air fields in hot pursuit of rebels. Pakistan Army tried to force Indian troops away from East pakistan by attacking in western sectors. Many battles like Battle of Basantar & Battle of Longewala were fought on western front which ensured Indian victories. Backed by air force & Navy, India & Mukti Bahini finally defeated Pakistan. More than 93,000 Pakistani soldiers & their abettors surrendered to joined forces (Mitro Bahini) & were taken prisoner of war by the Indian Army, the largest surrender since World War II. END OF THE WAR After Pakistan's surrender late in 1971, people in Bangladesh rejoiced at their liberation. This was followed by a need to get international acceptance for Bangladesh, as only a few countries recognised the new nation. Bangladesh sought admission in UN with most voting in its favour, but China vetoed this as Pakistan was its key ally. However U.S. grudgingly recognized it, & to ensure a smooth transition, in 1972 Shimla Agreement was signed between India & Pakistan. The treaty was a watershed in history of South Asian region as it ensured that Bangladesh would get official recognition from Pakistan & its principal allies in exchange for return of Pakistani PoWs. As a gesture of goodwill, the nearly 200 soldiers who were sought for war crimes by Bengalis were also pardoned by India. The accord also gave back more than 13,000 sq. km of land that Indian troops had won in West Pakistan during war, holding on to a few strategic places; most notably Kargil. This was done as a measure of ensuring "lasting peace" & was acknowledged by many observers as a sign of maturity by India. But some in India felt that the treaty had been too lenient to Bhutto, who had pleaded for more leeway as he felt that fragile democracy in Pakistan would crumble if the accord was perceived as being too harsh in Pakistan. REACTION IN WEST PAKISTAN TO THE WAR Reaction to defeat & dismemberment of half the nation was a shocking loss to top military & layman alike. No one had expected that they would lose the formal war in under a fortnight and were also very angry at the meek surrender of the army in East Pakistan. The myth of the Pakistan Army's might was shattered and the leadership stood exposed. Yahya Khan's dictatorship collapsed and gave way to Bhutto who took the opportunity to rise to power. General Niazi, who surrendered along with 93,000 troops, was viewed with suspicion and hatred upon his return to Pakistan. He was shunned and branded a traitor. Pakistan also failed to gather international support and were found fighting a lone battle with only the USA providing any external help. This further embittered the Pakistanis who had faced the worst military defeat of an army in decades. The debacle immediately prompted an enquiry headed by Justice Hamdoor Rahman. Called the Hamoodur Rahman Commission, it was initially suppressed by Bhutto as it put the military in poor light. When it was declassified, it showed many failings from the strategic to the tactical levels. It also condemned the atrocities and the crimes committed by the armed forces. It confirmed the rapes and the killings by the Pakistan Army and its supporters though the figures are far lower than the one quoted by Bangladesh. However, the army’s role in splintering Pakistan after its greatest military debacle was largely ignored by successive Pakistani governments. Nomenclature justifications Three names are frequently used to refer to the exact same warfare. •Pakistani Civil War This name is mainly used by current day Pakistan Army and by certain unofficial Indian sources. The name describes either the period 26 March 1971 to 16 December 1971 or the period 26 March 1971 to 03 December 1971. The main issue arises from the validity of the declaration of independence on 26 March. This is entirely a matter of political technicality. There is a certain logic used by proponents of this nomenclature. According to them no country accepted Bangladesh's independence declaration and hence the region contemplated continued to be East Pakistan. So, the war was a civil war in effect. • Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 This name is used by armies of all three countries to describe the period between 03 December 1971 and 16 December 1971. The Indian Army does not explicitly use the term to describe the war in their (India's) Eastern Front at any point. Instead, India only refers to the war on the Western Front as the Indo-Pakistani War. (Note that Indian Parliament recognized the People's Republic of Bangladesh as an independent country on the 6 December 1971.) There is no verifiable definite claim from the Pakistan Army or Government. Bangladesh clearly uses only the terminology Liberation War of Bangladesh for the war on Bangladeshi territory. The proponents of this terminology also question validity of declaration of independence of Bangladesh since there was no foreign government that acknowledged the independence. So, according to them, the war was effectively between Indian Army and Pakistan Army. •Liberation War of Bangladesh This terminology is officially used in Bangladesh by all sources and by Indian official sources. The proponents claim that having won 167 out of 169 seats of East Pakistan, Awami League had people's mandate to form a democratic government. This gave Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as the leader of the party the right to declare independence of the country. Since Major Ziaur Rahman claimed status of the temporary Head of the Republic, a Bangladesh government was in existence as early as 26 March 1971. Hence Bangladesh was in existence. There was also a Bangladesh Army which effectively meant the war was not between India and Pakistan but between Pakistan and Bangladesh backed by India. The terminology is politically preferred by both India and Bangladesh for a few reasons. •It gave India the right to enter the war in support of Bangladesh without breaching United Nations laws that prevent countries from interfering with other countries' internal affairs. •Members of East Pakistan Regiment were able to fight Pakistan Army without being treated as mutineers since they were fighting under command of a Bangladeshi Government. •It made it easier for Indian diplomatic efforts to gain support for the recognition of Bangladesh as a country. Atrocities The Bangladesh liberation war witnessed widespread atrocities committed mainly on the Bengali population of East Pakistan, at a level that Bangladeshis maintain is one of the worst genocides in history. The actual extent of the atrocities committed is not clearly known, and opinions vary, as the next section discusses. However, there is little doubt that numerous civilians were tortured and killed during the war. There are many mass graves in Bangladesh, and newer ones are always being discovered, such as a recent one in a mosque in Dhaka located in the non-Bengali region of the city. The first night of war on Bengalis, which is very well documented, saw indiscriminate killings of students of Dhaka University and other civilians. •How many people died? The number of people that died in the liberation war of Bangladesh is not known in any realiable accuracy. There has been a great disparity in the casualty figures put forth by Pakistan on one hand (26,000) and India and Bangladesh on the other hand (3 million). International media has also had different views, as can be seen from this compilation. Due to the lack of records and the long time that has since passed, an accurate number is hard to get, though various arguments for and against certain numbers have been put forward. Most guesses fall somewhere between a few hundred thousand and two million. Pakistan has maintained that only 26,000 people died in the war. Though most researchers do not support such a small number, many are inclined to believe that the real number was still a far cry from the 3 million put forward by Bangladesh and other sources. Some maintain that the real number of casualties was closer to 300,000 and was wrongly translated. This view received recent support from a conference on South Asia held in the United States [3][4]. Supporters of this view point out that killing 3 million people in the space of nine months is almost impossible. On the other hand, though the figure of 3 million is unsubstantiated, many believe that the real number is still exceedingly high (more than 1 million) and the killing can clearly be termed a genocide. This view gets support from the aforementioned reports in international media, which were reported during the war before the 3 million figure was put forward. Supporters of this view would also point out to the enormous influx of refugees into India (8 million seems to be a widely accepted number), and reason that killings numbering as low as the Pakistanis would like to claim would not have caused such a large number of people to leave their homes. Some say that the Bangladesh claim might have had roots in a statement by Yahya Khan. According to Robert Payne in Massacre [1973], on February 22, 1971 Yahya Khan told a group of generals, "Kill three million of them, and the rest will eat out of our hands." • Atrocities on women and minorities Numerous women were tortured, raped and killed during the war. Again, exact numbers are not known and are a subject of debate. Bangladeshi sources cite a staggering figure of 200,000 women raped. Some other sources, for example Susan Brownmiller, refer to an even higher number of 400,000. Pakistani sources claim the number is much lower, though having not completely denied rape incidents. There has been evidence of not only rape (and usually subsequent murder) of women, but of sex slaves kept captive by the Pakistan army. During the last periods of war, when the Pakistani army was retreating, the Mukti Bahini and Indian forces reported freeing numerous such women. Apart from Brownmiller's, another work that has included direct experiences from the women raped is Ami Virangana Bolchhi ("I, the heroine, speak") by Nilima Ibrahim. The work includes in its name from the word Virangana (Heroine), given by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman after the war, to the raped and tortured women during the war. This was a conscious effort to alleviate any social stigma the women might face in the society. How successful this effort was is doubtful, though. The minorities of Bangladesh, specially the Hindus, were the biggest targets of the Pakistan army. There was widespread killing of Hindu males, and rapes of women. In public places, men were often made to undress to prove that they have been circumcised and hence were Muslim. More than 60% of the Bengali refugees that had fled to India were Hindus, and many never returned. • Killing of intellectuals The Pakistani ruling class had long formed a distaste for Bengali intelligista and students. They viewed them, correctly, as one of the main proponents of the rise of Bengali nationalism in East Pakistan. This group had been instrumental in the 1952 uprising called the Language movement, which ended in Pakistan accepting Bangla as one of its national languages. The famed six-point demand put forward by Mujib, which became the rallying point for Awami League in the years before the war, was derived from the earlier 11-point program penned by the students. In an attempt to undermine the rising Bengali identity, Pakistan had variously tried to have Bangla written in roman letters, ban singing the songs of Rabindranath, mostly in vain. The rulers, again correctly, also found a growing leftist sentiment in the intelligista and student bodies which they vowed to crush. Hence during the war, a planned effort was made to void Bangladesh of its most enlightened people. In addition to the killings committed at the beginning and all throughout the war, a meticulously planned execution was carried out on December 14, 1971. Professors, journalists, doctors, artists, writers of unknown numbers were rounded up in Dhaka, blindfolded, taken to Rajarbag in the middle section of the city, and executed en masse. This day is now honored in Bangladesh as Buddhijibi Hotta Dibosh ("Day of Martyred Intellectuals"). Recipients of Military Awards Four categories of gallantry awards were created after the war in Bangladesh to honour those who had demonstrated outstanding bravery in the war. These were: Bir Sreshţho, Bir Uttom, Bir Bikrôm, and Bir Protik. Seven soldiers were awarded the ultimate award for gallantry, Bir Sreshţho. All seven had given their lives in the war. They were: •Amin, Ruhul •Jahangir, Mohiuddin (Captain) •Kamal, Mostafa (Sepoy) •Rahman, Hamidur (Sepoy) •Rahman, Matiur (Flight Lieutenant) •Rouf, Munshi Abdur (Naik) •Sheikh, Nur Mohammad (Lance Naik) Current day influence of the War The conflict in arts and media Naturally, the liberation war on 1971 has been a source of inspiration for a wide body of artistic work in Bangladesh, as well as some work by international artists. Follows a incomplete list of some of the major works done on the war: • Films oStop Genocide – documentary by Zahir Raihan, (1971) oNine Months to Freedom: The Story of Bangladesh – documentary by S. Sukhdev (1972) oShei Rater Kotha Bolte Eshechi ("Tale of the Darkest Night") – documentary by Kawsar Chowdhury, 2001. oMuktir Gaan, Muktir Katha and Narir Katha – three different Bangla documentaries by Tareque and Catherine Masud oBorder – a Bollywood movie on the India Pakistan side of the war. oAguner Parashmani – feature film by Humayun Ahmed oShyamal Chhaya – feature film by Humayun Ahmed oEkattorer Jishu – feature film by Nasiruddin Yusuf •Bangla literature and memoirs oAmi Virangana Balchhi – memoir by Nilima Ibrahim oEkattorer Dinguli – memoir by Jahanara Imam oMa – novel by Anisul Haque oJochhna o Janani'r Galpo – novel by Humayun Ahmed •International arts and media oConcert for Bangladesh, New York, 1971 oSeptember on Jessore Road – a long poem by Allen Ginsberg oJoan Baez: Song for Bangladesh. (Song) oGeorge Harrison: Bangla Desh. (Song) •Sculptures and monuments oSmritishoudho – national "memory monument" in Savar, Dhaka oAporajito Bangla – sculpture in Dhaka University oShabash Bangladesh – sculpture in Rajshahi University oShoparjito Shadhinota – sculpture in Dhaka University • Museums o Liberation war museum, Dhaka o Shahid Smriti Sangrohoshala (Martyr memorial museum), Rajshahi [উৎসঃ ইন্টারনেট, ২০০৪ সাল অবধি হালনাগাদকৃত তথ্যের সাপেক্ষে]